Sustainable and Sound Development

　　decades of hard work and continuouseffort following the establishmentof the People’s Republic of China， thefoundation for the great revitalization ofthe Chinese nation is here.

　　History proves that while economicdevelopment is a decisive factor in acountry’s prosperity， it is not the only conditionthat matters. Xi said that socialismwith Chinese characteristics is based onall-round development.

　　Historically， economic developmentisa decisive condition for national prosperityand strength. But， economic growth is notequal to a country’s growth and power，let alone its lasting stability and success.Countries that failed in competition tendto be those that are rich， but not strong.In retrospect， China’s economic aggregatelong surpassed that of Europe， anduntil 1870， it was still the world’s largesteconomy.

　　Today， China particularly needs tostrengthen its construction of socialsecurity systems on the basis of economicdevelopment， so as to promote socialprogress and harmony. Xi said that theCPC always puts forward goals in accordancewith the people’s will.

　　During the early days of thePeople’sRepublic of China， the Chinese economywas centered on agriculture， with itsindustrial base quite weak. In the faceof Western economic pressure and thethreat of military attack， China’s industrializationcould only give priority to heavyindustry. Within a short period of time，China managed to set up a relativelywell-developed industrial and nationaleconomic system. However， such a modeof industrialization comes at a price. Inparticular， living conditions among peoplein both rural and urban areas improvedvery slowly. During the early years of reformand opening up that started in 1978，China still had more than 250 millionpeople living in absolute poverty. At a timewhen the people fervently expected rapidimprovement in living conditions， Chinaentered a new stage of development，which created a number of miracles.

　　China is now the second largesteconomy in the world， and has become amiddle-income country. It still has someconditions for further development， suchas a strong and consolidated government，which provides a basic and stable socialenvironment for development； expandingindustrialization and urbanization as wellas underdeveloped central and westernregions. Various problems arising in theprocess of development are undergoingextensive and deep changes， posingsevere future challenges.

　　On one hand， Western countrieshopeto see stability and development in China，so that they can share the developmentfruits. On the other hand， they are not sowilling to see a strong and prosperous China，and thus use obvious or hidden measuresto contain China. Meanwhile， when abig country begins to enjoy more rights inthe world， it takes on more responsibilities，a new challenge facing China.

　　It is urgent to transformChina’s currenteconomic development mode. Withthe rapid expansion of its economicaggregate， problems that lead to unbalanced，uncoordinated and unsustainabledevelopment， and conflicts that curbChina’s sustainable and sound developmentbecome increasingly striking. Risinglabor costs， shrinking demographic dividends，excessive dependence on energyresources and foreign core technologies，sharply increasing ecological environmentalpressure， all highlight the importance，urgency and difficulty of transformingChina’s economic development model.

　　At the same time， there is still noessential progress in various structuralreforms designed to cope with the globalfinancial crisis. We still have to wait andsee whether great technological revolutionsthat could restore rapid global economicgrowth will appear in the comingfive to 10 years.

　　While proud of the great achievementswe have made， we must be clear on theissues posing severe challenges to socialdevelopment. We must speed up methodsto resolve conflicts and problems thataffect social harmony and justice， whichfurther hinder our efforts to build asociety of common prosperity. Weshould not equal development toeconomic development. When drasticchanges occurred in Eastern Europe，the per-capita income， technologicalcapability， military strength and livingstandards in those countries weremuch higher than we have in China.

　　What led to the rapid collapse ofthesecountries？ It taught us a lesson thatdevelopment results must equally benefitthe whole of society and we shouldpay equal attention to social as well aseconomic development.

　　Over the past 60 years and more，the CPC has accumulated rich experiencein governing the country. However，under new circumstances， it hasa lot of problems. Improving the Party’sleadership and governing capability iskey to China’s growth.

　　Apart from economic growth，development also includes socialprogress. The major factor affectingdevelopment is economic growth，while the transitional period frommedium income toward high incomehinges on the method and quality ofsocial development. China is now movingtoward a high-income society， andthus while transforming the economicdevelopment mode， we must also furtherpromote social equality， improvepolicies and push forward systemicreform.

　　In order to set up a more efficient，standardized and fairer marketsystem， we need to draw a clearer linebetween the government and market.

　　Unnecessary administrative approvalprocedures should be cancelled， whilesome administrative rights should bederegulated from the Central Governmentto local authorities.

　　Meanwhile， we need to set up anefficient social security network thatcovers the whole population. The peopleshould be guided to participate incommunity and public affairs management.

　　There should be a platform forthe demand of legitimate rights andinterests. If well done， these efforts willhelp lay a solid foundation for lastingpeace and prosperity.

　　Li Wei

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